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Abstract
This study determined the hygienic conditions of selected surfaces of fresh blueberry packing lines and evaluated the ease of biofilm accumulation on, and cleanability of, materials commonly found in the blueberry packing environment. Packing line hygiene was assessed by enumerating total aerobes, total yeasts and molds and total coliforms and determining the incidence of fecal coliforms and enterococci in surface swab samples. Twelve fecal coliforms isolated from the six packing lines were used in the sanitation study. Results showed that berry lugs, rubber belts on color sorters, and immature berry disposing areas had significantly higher (P<0.05) microbial counts than the other sites sampled. The amount of biofilms accumulated on polypropylene surfaces was significantly higher than that on the other surfaces tested in the study. Ozonated water was significantly more effective in removing biofilms than a quaternary ammonium compound which were significantly more effective than chlorine dioxide, followed by sodium hypochlorite.